The next few weeks continued on in much the same way: Leonard went to work, tried his hardest to keep himself busy, and came back to his quarters to find Gaila there. Sometimes she was there before him, sometimes after. The nights when she got there before him, he'd find her in his bed, naked and sprawled out, a come hither look on her face.

Leonard was grateful for the distraction.

Only problem was, Gaila couldn't be there all the time. And during the day, those thoughts crept back into his brain. Leonard couldn't keep them at bay without having something to distract him, and he was running thin on things to do; he'd rearranged his quarters three times, organized his clothes and his alcohol collection, and had scoured the bathroom to the point that he didn't believe another germ would survive for at least four months.

He was getting more and more restless. It was, however, getting easier for him to face Jim up on the bridge, even when he was standing unbearably close to Spock.

But it still didn't stop his heart from hurting when he was alone in his quarters, looking around and remembering happier times.

It was during the fourth week of their…relationship that Gaila began to notice Leonard's depression wasn't fading as quickly as she'd thought it would. That was about the time that she started coming around more during the day, and not just for sex. She would stop by his quarters and watch holos with him, or have a drink before shift. Sometimes she'd bring a brush and would make him sit on the floor in front of her while she groomed him in that weird way of hers.

It was during one such session that Leonard finally asked the question that had been bothering him for the past few weeks.

"Why're you doing this, Gaila?"

"Doing what?"

"Keepin' me company like this. Sleeping with me. All of it. Why? I'm sure you've got better things to do than keep an old man like myself company."

"Lenny, stop thinking of yourself as old. You're only three years older than me! And I like keeping you company. You're fun, and hilarious in a grumpy sort of way. And you're fantastic in bed. But mostly, Lenny, I don't like seeing you sad."

Leonard felt his heart swell and his entire body warm up. He'd begun to think no one would really ever care again, until now.

"…Thank you," he murmured, leaning into her hands.

"It's my pleasure," she said, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. They lapsed back into silence, Gaila's fingers combing through his hair, blunt fingernails scraping over his scalp, Leonard staring at his own hands clasped in his lap. It was a pleasant silence, and for the first time in a month, Leonard's mind didn't wander to old memories of Jim. Instead, it was focused on Gaila's hands in his hair, the sensations that were working to relax him.

Leonard thought he might be falling in love a little bit.

It was after the grooming session that Leonard decided to go talk to Jim. They hadn't spoken beyond the bare minimum, and he and Spock weren't even acknowledging that the other existed.

His heart was pounding as he approached Jim's quarters. He'd made sure Jim was alone before coming down here. Taking a deep breath, he raised his hand and pressed the buzzer to his door. He felt like his heart was about to leap out of his throat as he waited for Jim to answer.

Finally, the door opened, revealing a smiling Jim. His bright smile faltered when he saw who it was.

"Oh. Hey Bones."

"Um. Hi Jim. Can I come in?"

"Er…sure."

Jim stepped back awkwardly, allowing Leonard to step into his quarters. They were just as he'd remembered, only neater and warmer; he supposed that was a side effect of living with Spock.

He stood in the middle of the room, the silence between them growing more and more awkward each second that passed.

"Jim, I'm sorry," Leonard finally blurted out. "I'm sorry for exploding on you a month ago. I had no right to do that. I just…I was hurt, Jim. I was holding on to false hope, and I was angry that you were leaving me. It…it was like Jocelyn all over again. And I'm sorry for that. That's not your fault. I knew you and Spock would happen. It was only a matter of time. I just didn't know when. And I certainly wasn't prepared for it. But, basically, what I'm getting at is, I'm sorry for flipping shit like I did, and I miss you."

Leonard turned around, heart racing again, to take in Jim's expression. The blonde was staring at him, a dumbfounded look on his face.

"Bones, I…uh…Look, I'm sorry, but I'm with Spock, and-"

"Jim, I'd be lying if I said I didn't want you back, but that's not why I'm here. I just wanted to apologize. I miss talking to you, out of everything. You're the first real friend I've made in a long damn time, and I hate not having that friendship."

Jim's face relaxed marginally, and he even smiled a little.

"I missed you too, Bones. And I'm sorry for hurting you the way I did."

Bones' heart slowed down, and he felt the vice that had been gripping his heart for the past month ease.

"Thank you, Jim," he murmured, feeling a smile beginning to tug at his lips.

And then the silence became awkward again, and Leonard didn't know quite what to say.

"So, uh-"

He was cut off by Jim suddenly launching himself into Leonard's arms, hugging him fiercely around the neck. Leonard stood still, momentarily shocked into immobility, before bringing his arms up and wrapping them around Jim's waist, hugging him tightly. They held each other for a few long moments, until Jim slowly began to pull away. Leonard let him go, albeit reluctantly.

"You have no idea how much I wanted to come and hug you like that, Bones. I fucking hated not talking to you. Spock's great and all, but I missed having you grump at me. And drinking with you. And telling you about the dumbasses on the away missions. Fuck, I just missed you, Bones."

Leonard's heart swelled at that, and and had to resist the urge to reach out and hug him again.

"Same here, kid. It's too quiet around Sick Bay and in my quarters without you coming around to harass me."

"I tried to go down there once last week. I thought Chapel was going to castrate me when she saw me."

Leonard laughed at that, imagining the look on Chapel's face when Jim showed up at the doors of Sick Bay.

"Sorry about that. She's a little bit protective of me."

"So I noticed."

They lapsed into silence yet again. Leonard was the one to break it this time.

"I kind of need to go. I have some other stuff to take care of. But, uh…comm me if you wanna come by for a drink or something sometime."

"Yeah. Yeah, I'll do that." Jim smiled warmly at him, and Leonard breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay. So, uh. I'm going to go now…" Leonard moved towards the door, but was stopped by Jim's arms around him, hugging him tightly yet again.

"I missed you, old man."

"Missed you too, kid." Leonard hugged him close once again, cradling the back of his head in one hand. Jim leaned into the touch, sighing softly.

Pulling away, Leonard sighed one last time, and slipped out of his quarters with a smile on his face.

Spock was a whole other story. Leonard felt the need to apologize to him as well, especially for snapping at him in his office that day. Swallowing his pride, Leonard made his way down to the science labs, praying to whatever God there was that he would find Spock alone.

He lucked out, walking into the labs and finding Spock the only one there. Taking a deep breath, he cleared his throat and stood in the doorway.

Spock looked up, eyebrow quirked.

"Doctor. What brings you to the science labs?"

"I wanted to talk to you."

"I gather you are not looking for a discussion about the data my team has collected over the past few months?"

"No. Er…I wanted to talk to you about that day in my office. When you came by to talk to me about blowing up on Jim."

"Ah."

"Yeah. Um…" Leonard exhaled, steadying himself.

"Look, I came by here to apologize for my behavior. It was uncalled for, and I was acting out of hurt. I have no problem with you anymore. I just…wanted to clear the air, is all."

Spock studied him for several moments before inclining his head in acknowledgement.

"Your apology is accepted, Doctor, although unnecessary. You behaved as any human would have; I was not offended by your words."

Leonard felt his eye twitching at the Vulcan's words.

"Still. I'm sorry."

"It is not important. I trust you have apologized to Jim as well?"

Leonard felt a twinge of pain at Spock's use of Jim's name, so casually.

"Yeah. We talked things out."

"Very well. Do you require anything else?"

"No. That's all I wanted. I'll leave you to your data or whatever."

"Good bye, Doctor."

"See ya, Spock." Leonard made his way back to the door, but stopped and turned around when he reached it.

"Oh, and Spock?"

"Yes, Doctor?"

"If you break Jim's heart, I'll break your kneecaps. Remember that."

"Rest assured, I have no plans to do such a thing."

"Still. The threat remains."

Leonard could have sworn he saw a hint of a smile on Spock's face before he turned around and slipped out of the labs.

He returned to his quarters to find Gaila there once again, this time sprawled out on his bed, fast asleep. Smiling at the serene image she presented, he slipped off his boots and crawled into bed, curling around her. She sighed softly and snuggled closer to his body, attempting to leech his warmth.

Leonard closed his eyes and enjoyed the feel of her sleeping against him, his heart beating freely, no longer trapped by the vice that had been there for the past month.

Finally, his life was beginning to right itself again.